Mini dictionary
The numbers in the Mini dictionary are Unit
allow for sth to consider or include something
when you are making plans or judging a
situation 37
a n s w e r (sb) b a c k if someone, especially a child,
answers back, or answers someone back, they
reply rudely to someone they should be polite to
20
ask a f t e r sb/sth to ask for information a b o u t
someone, especially about their health 59
ask o u t sb or ask sb o u t to invite someone to
come with you to a place such as the cinema or a
restaurant, especially as a way of starting a
romantic relationship 1, 52
ask sb o v e r / r o u n d to invite someone to come to
your house 1, 59
b a c k d o w n to admit that you are wrong or that
you have been defeated, often because you are
forced to 38
b a c k off to stop being involved in a situation,
especially in order to allow other people to deal
with it themselves 34
b a c k o n t o s t h if a building backs o n t o
something, its back faces that thing 24
b a c k o u t to decide not to do something that you
were going to do or that you had agreed to do
38
b a c k up ( s t h ) or b a c k ( s t h ) up to make a copy
of computer information so that you do not lose
it 65
b a c k up sb or b a c k sb up to say that someone is
telling the truth 38
b a c k up sb or b a c k sb up to support or help
someone 68
b a c k - u p n an extra copy of computer information
65
b a n g i n t o s t h to knock against something,
usually by accident 21
bank on sth to depend on something happening
34
bargain f o r / o n sth to expect something to
happen and be prepared for it 37
b a r r a c k for sb informal, American & Australian
to shout encouragement to the players in a
football team 69
b a s h sth/sb a b o u t to treat something or someone
in a rough way 18
bawl o u t sb or bawl sb o u t informal, American
& Australian to tell someone angrily that
something they have done is w r o n g 69
be b o o k e d up if an event, person, or place is
booked up, they have no space or time available
for someone 33
be c a u g h t up in s t h to be involved in a situation,
often when you do not want to be 34
be c u t off to be a long way from other places and
people 24
numbers not page numbers.
be d y i n g for sth informal to want something
very much, especially food or drink 19
be g e t t i n g at s t h informal if you ask someone
w h a t they are getting at, you are asking them
what they mean, usually because they have
expressed something indirectly 7
be h u n g up informal to be very worried a b o u t
something and spend a lot of time thinking
a b o u t it 51
be left o v e r if an a m o u n t of money or food is left
over, it remains when the rest has been used or
eaten 60
be left o v e r to exist from an earlier time 23
be l i t t e r e d w i t h sth if something is littered with
a particular type of thing, it has or contains a lot
of that thing 32
be m i x e d up in sth informal to be involved in
an illegal or unpleasant activity 67
be p a r t i e d o u t informal to have had enough of
parties because you have been to so many 70
be playing at sth if you ask what someone is
playing at, you ask what they are doing, in a
way which shows that you are surprised a n d
angry 40
be p r e s s e d for s t h to have very little or not
enough of something, especially time or money
22
be p u t o u t to be annoyed, often because of
something that someone has done or said to you
11
be r a i n e d off if a sport or other outside activity is
rained off, it cannot start or continue because it
is raining 61
be s e t a g a i n s t s t h / d o i n g s t h to be opposed to
doing or having something 37
be s n o w e d in if a person or place is snowed in,
there is so much snow that it is impossible to
travel anywhere or leave that place 61
be s n o w e d u n d e r informal to have so m u c h
w o r k that you have problems dealing with it 46
be s p r e a d o u t if people or things are spread out,
they are in different parts of a large area and are
not close together 24
be t a k e n up w i t h sth to be very busy doing
something 12
be t h r o w n t o g e t h e r if people are thrown
together in a situation, that situation causes them
to meet each other and to get to know each
other 34
be t i e d up informal to be busy so that you are
unable to see or speak to anyone else or go
anywhere 46
be t u c k e d away to be in a quiet or hidden place
which not many people see or go to 24
b e a t d o w n sb/sth or b e a t sb/sth d o w n to force
someone to reduce the price of something 48
English Phrasal Verbs in Use 183
 b e a t up sb or b e a t sb up to hurt someone badly
by hitting or kicking them again and again 67
b e c o m e of sb/sth if you ask w h a t became of
someone or something, you want to k n o w where
they are and what happened to them 55
b e l t i n t o sth Australian to begin to do something
quickly and with a lot of effort 69
B e l t up! informal, British & Australian
something that you say angrily to someone in
order to tell them to be quiet 41
b e n d o v e r b a c k w a r d s t o d o sth t o try
extremely hard to do something to help or please
someone 30
big up sb/sth informal to talk a lot a b o u t how
excellent someone or something is, sometimes
praising them more than is deserved 70
bite b a c k to do something bad to someone
because they have done something bad to you
20
b i t e back s t h or b a c k s t h b a c k to stop yourself
from saying something that shows your real
feelings or thoughts 20
b l e n d in or b l e n d i n t o s t h if something or
someone blends in, they look or seem the same
as the things or people around them and so you
do not notice them 32
bliss ( s b ) o u t informal to become or make
someone become totally happy and relaxed 70
b l o c k e d - u p adj filled with something so that
nothing can pass through [used of a n a r r o w
space] 4, 56
blow down (sth) or blow (sth) down if
something blows d o w n , or if the wind blows
something d o w n , that thing falls to the ground
because the wind blows it 17
b l o w o v e r if a storm blows over, it becomes less
strong and then ends 61
b l o w o v e r if an unpleasant situation [e.g.
argument] blows over, it gradually becomes less
important and is then forgotten 26
b l o w up ( s t h / s b ) or b l o w ( s t h / s b ) up to destroy
something or kill someone with a b o m b , or to be
destroyed or killed with a b o m b 5
b l o w up s t h or b l o w sth up to fill something
[e.g. balloon, tyre] with air 5, 29
b l o w up informal to suddenly become very angry
5 up, their marriage or relationship ends 53
boil o v e r if a liquid that is being heated boils over,
it flows over the side of the pan 17, 60
b o o k e d up if an event, person, or place is booked
up, they have no space or time available for
someone 33
b o t t l e o u t informal, British to suddenly decide
not to do something because you are afraid 36
b o t t l e up s t h or b o t t l e s t h up informal to not
allow yourself to show or talk a b o u t your
feelings, especially feelings of anger and sadness
51
184 English Phrasal Verbs in Use
b o u n c e b a c k if an e-mail bounces back, it comes
back to you because the address is wrong or
there is a computer problem 70
branch o u t to start to do something different from
what you usually do, especially in your job 46
b r e a k a w a y to stop being part of a group because
you disagree with them or because you do not
want to be controlled by them 68
break d o w n if a machine or vehicle breaks down,
it stops working 1, 2
break d o w n to be unable to control your feelings
and to start to cry 51
break d o w n to become mentally or physically ill
because of an unpleasant experience 56
b r e a k in to get into a building or car by using
force, usually in order to steal something 4
b r e a k i n t o sth to get into a building or car by
using force, usually in order to steal something
67
break-in n when someone forces their way into a
building or car, usually to steal something 4, 67
break off ( s t h ) or break ( s t h ) off to stop doing
something 28
break off ( s t h ) or break ( s t h ) off if discussions
between two groups of people break off, or if
someone breaks them off, they end suddenly,
before they have been completed 66
break off to suddenly stop speaking 15
break off s t h or b r e a k sth off to end a
relationship 53
b r e a k off w i t h sb to end a romantic relationship
with someone 53
b r e a k o u t if something dangerous and unpleasant
[e.g. war, disease, fire] breaks out, it suddenly
starts 66 o u t b r e a k n when something
unpleasant or difficult to control starts, such as
war or disease 66
break o u t to escape from prison 67
b r e a k o u t n an escape 66, 67
b r e a k t h r o u g h s t h to succeed in dealing with a
problem or difficult situation 66
b r e a k t h r o u g h n an important discovery or
success that helps you achieve or deal with
something 4, 66
break up if a marriage breaks up, or if t w o
people who have a romantic relationship break
b r e a k - u p n the act or event of breaking up 53
break up if schools or universities, or the people
w h o study or work in them break up, classes end
and the holidays start 43
break up if someone w h o is talking on a mobile
phone is breaking up, their voice c a n n o t be
heard 50
b r i g h t e n up if the weather brightens up, the sky
becomes lighter and the sun starts to shine 61
b r i g h t e n up to suddenly look or feel happier 51
brighten up sth or brighten sth up to make
somewhere more attractive, often by adding
colours 24
bring a b o u t sth or bring sth a b o u t to make
something happen 25
bring a l o n g sb/sth or bring sb/sth a l o n g
to bring someone or something somewhere 59
bring a r o u n d / r o u n d sb/sth or bring sb/sth
a r o u n d / r o u n d to bring someone or something
somewhere, especially to someone's house 59
bring sb a r o u n d / r o u n d to persuade someone to
agree with you or to do what you w a n t them to
do 39
bring b a c k sth or bring s t h back to make
someone remember or think about something
from the past 1, 25
bring d o w n sb or bring sb d o w n to cause
people in positions of power [e.g. government,
president] to lose their position 66
bring f o r w a r d s t h or bring sth f o r w a r d to
change the date or time of an event so that it
happens earlier than planned 22
bring in sth or bring sth in if a government or
organisation brings in something new [e.g. law,
rule], they make it exist for the first time 68
bring off sth or bring s t h off to succeed in doing
something difficult 27
bring r o u n d / a r o u n d sb/sth or bring sb/sth
r o u n d / a r o u n d see bring a r o u n d / r o u n d
bring up sb or bring sb up to look after a child
and educate them until they are old enough to
look after themselves 55
bring up s t h or bring s t h up to start to talk
about a particular subject 1, 31
brush a s i d e sb/sth or brush sb/sth a s i d e to
refuse to listen to w h a t someone says, or to
refuse to think about something seriously 2, 39
brush up ( o n ) s t h to practise and improve your
skills or your knowledge of something that you
learned in the past but have partly forgotten 43
b u b b l e o v e r to be very excited and enthusiastic
31
build on sth to use a success or achievement as a
base from which to achieve more success 27
b u m p i n t o sb to meet someone you know when
you had not planned to meet them 21
burn off sth or burn sth off to use or get rid of
energy or something which provides energy [e.g.
calories, fat], by doing a lot of physical exercise
57
b u r n o u t n illness or extreme tiredness because
you have been working too hard 70
b u r s t i n t o s t h to suddenly start to m a k e a noise,
especially to start crying, laughing or singing 21
b u t t in to interrupt a conversation or discussion
or someone w h o is talking 31
buy i n t o s t h informal to completely believe in a
set of ideas 70
b y g o n e adj from the past 23
b y s t a n d e r n a person w h o sees something
happening but w h o is not involved 4
call a r o u n d American to telephone several
people, often in order to find out information
69
call b a c k to go back to a place in order to visit
someone or collect something that you were
unable to visit or collect earlier 24
call b a c k ( s b ) or call ( s b ) b a c k to telephone
someone for the second time or to telephone
someone w h o rang you earlier 20, 50
call for sth to need or deserve a particular action
or quality 36
call for sth to say that you think a particular
thing should be done, usually in order to change
or improve a situation 39
call for sb to visit a place in order to collect
someone 19
call in British & American to visit a place or
person for a short time, usually while you are
going somewhere else 16
call off sth or call s t h off to decide that a
planned event or activity will not happen,
especially because it is no longer possible or
useful 1, 2, 33
call off s t h or call sth off to decide to stop an
activity that has already started 5, 28
call r o u n d British & American to visit someone
who lives near to you for a short time 59
c a l m d o w n ( s b ) o r c a l m ( s b ) d o w n t o stop
feeling upset, angry, or excited, or to make
someone stop feeling this way 51
c a l m d o w n ( s t h ) or c a l m ( s t h ) d o w n if a
situation calms down, or if you calm it d o w n , it
becomes more peaceful 34
can't/couldn't g e t o v e r sth if someone can't get
over something, they are very surprised or
shocked that something has happened or that
something is true 7
c a r e for sb to look after someone w h o is too
young, too old, or too ill to look after themselves
56
carried away to become so excited about
something that you do not control w h a t you say
or do and you forget a b o u t everything else 51
carry on to continue doing something 55
carry o u t sth or c a r r y s t h o u t to do or
complete something, especially something
important 45
c a r r y o u t s t h o r c a r r y s t h o u t i f you carry out
something that you said you would do, or that
you have been told to do [e.g. instructions, order,
threat], you do it 68
c a s h b a c k n money from your bank account that
you can get from a shop when you buy goods
with a debit card 70
c a t c h on to become popular 27
English Phrasal Verbs in Use 185
 c a t c h up to reach someone in front of you by
going faster than them 27
c a t c h up to reach the same quality or standard as
someone or something else 42
c a t c h up o n / w i t h sth to do something you did
not have time to do earlier 46
c a t c h up w i t h sb to meet someone you know,
after not seeing them for a period of time 19
c a u g h t up in sth to be involved in a situation,
often when you do not w a n t to be 34
c h a n g e o v e r n a complete change from one
system or m e t h o d to another 4, 26
c h a r g e up sth or c h a r g e s t h up if you charge
up a piece of electrical equipment, you put
electricity into it 50, 64
c h a s e up sb or c h a s e sb up to ask someone to
do something that they said they would do but
that they have not done yet 46
c h a s e up sth or c h a s e sth up to try to get
something that belongs to you or that you need,
or to try to discover more information about
something 2
c h a t up sb or c h a t sb up informal, British &
Australian to talk to someone in a way that
shows them that you are sexually attracted to
them and to try to make them attracted to you
52
c h a t - u p n informal a way of talking which
suggests you are sexually attracted to someone
and w a n t them to be attracted to you 52
c h e c k in to show your ticket at an airport so that
you can be told where you are sitting and so that
your bags can be put on the aircraft 62
c h e c k - i n n the place at an airport where you go
to say that you have arrived for your flight 4, 62
c h e c k in or c h e c k i n t o s t h to arrive at a hotel
and say w h o you are so that you can be given a
key for your room 62
c h e c k o u t to leave a hotel after paying and giving
back the key of your r o o m 62
c h e c k o u t n the place where you pay for things in
a big shop 4
check over sth/sb or check sth/sb over to
examine something or someone to make sure
that they are correct, healthy or working
properly 17
c h e c k up on sb to discover what someone is
doing in order to be certain that they are doing
what they should be doing or what they said
they would do 35
c h e e r up ( s b ) or c h e e r ( s b ) up if someone
cheers up, or if someone or something cheers
them up, they start to feel happier 51
c h i c k e n o u t informal to decide not to do
something you had planned to do because you
are too frightened 37
chill o u t informal to relax completely, or not
allow things to upset you 70
186 English Phrasal Verbs in Use
chop down sth or chop sth down to cut
through a tree or a group of trees so that they
fall to the ground 17
c h o p up sth or c h o p s t h up to cut something,
especially food, into small pieces 13
c l a m p d o w n if someone in authority clamps
d o w n , they do something in order to stop or
limit a particular activity 68
c l a m p d o w n n a sudden action taken by a
government or people in authority to stop or
limit a particular activity 68
c l e a r off informal to leave a place quickly 15
c l e a r o u t sth or c l e a r s t h o u t to make a
place tidy by removing things that are unwanted
14
c l e a r up ( s t h ) or c l e a r ( s t h ) up to make a place
tidy and clean, especially by putting things where
they usually belong 5, 13
c l e a r up if the weather clears up, it improves 61
c l o c k in/on to record the time you arrive at work,
usually on a machine with a clock 22
c l o c k off/out to record the time you leave work,
usually on a machine with a clock 22
c l o g up ( s t h ) or c l o g ( s t h ) up if something [e.g.
road, pipe] clogs up, or if something clogs it up,
it becomes blocked and nothing in it is able to
move 13
c l o s e d o w n ( s t h ) or c l o s e ( s t h ) d o w n if a
business or organisation closes d o w n , or if
someone or something closes it d o w n , it stops
doing business 17
c l o u d o v e r if the sky clouds over, it becomes
covered with clouds 61
c l u b t o g e t h e r if a group of people club together,
they share the cost of something between them
48
c o m e a b o u t when you say h o w o r why
something comes about, especially something
which is not planned, you explain h o w or why it
happens 6
c o m e a c r o s s s t h / s b to discover something by
chance, or to meet someone by chance 1, 6
c o m e a l o n g to arrive at a place 6
c o m e a p a r t if something comes apart, it
separates into pieces 6
c o m e a r o u n d / r o u n d to visit someone at their
house 2, 59
c o m e a r o u n d / r o u n d to become conscious again
2, 6
c o m e back to sth to start talking a b o u t a
particular subject again 31
c o m e d o w n to s t h if a situation or decision
comes down to something, that is the thing that
will influence it most 6
c o m e d o w n w i t h sth to become ill, usually with
a disease that is not very serious 56
c o m e off to happen successfully or as planned 6,
27
C o m e off it! informal something that you say in
order to tell someone that you do not believe
them or that you disagree with them 41
C o m e o n ! something that you say to someone in
order to encourage them to do something you
want them to do, especially to hurry up, to try
harder, or to tell you something 41
c o m e o u t if dirt or colour comes out of
something, especially clothing or cloth, it
disappears or becomes less strong after being in
water 6
c o m e o u t if someone w h o has been in prison or
hospital comes o u t , they leave 6
c o m e o u t if something that is published [e.g.
book, newspaper], a musical recording [e.g.
single, album], or a film comes out, it becomes
available for people to buy or see it 14
c o m e o u t if the truth a b o u t something comes
out, it becomes k n o w n publicly after it has been
kept secret 6
c o m e o u t if results or information come out, they
are given to people 6
c o m e o v e r to visit someone at their house 59
c o m e r o u n d / a r o u n d see c o m e a r o u n d / r o u n d
c o m e t o s t h t o b e a particular total when
amounts or numbers are added together 47
c o m e to sth if you come to a decision or a
conclusion, you make a decision about something,
or you decide what you think about something 6
c o m e u n d e r sth if a piece of information comes
under a particular part of a list, book, or
collection of things, you can find it in that part
35
c o m e up if a subject [e.g. issue, name] comes up
in a conversation, it is discussed or mentioned 6
c o m e up if a job or opportunity comes up, it
becomes available 6
c o m e up if a problem or difficult situation comes
up, it happens when you do not expect it 6
c o m e up if a question or a subject comes up in an
exam, that question is asked or questions a b o u t
that subject are asked in the exam 43
c o m e up a g a i n s t s t h / s b to have to deal with a
difficult situation or someone w h o disagrees with
you or tries to stop you doing w h a t you w a n t to
do 1,6
c o m e up w i t h s t h to think of or to suggest a
plan or idea, a solution to a problem, or an
answer to a question 36
cool down (sb/sth) or cool (sb/sth) down to
become cooler, or to make someone or
something become cooler 57, 61
cool down/off (sb/sth) or cool (sb/sth)
down/off to become calmer, or to make
someone or something become calmer 51, 61
c o u l d do w i t h sth/sb to need or want something
or someone 19
I c o u l d do w i t h o u t sth informal something you
say when something is annoying you or causing
problems for you, because your situation at that
time makes it difficult for you to deal with it 37
c o u l d n ' t ask for sb/sth if you say that you
couldn't ask for someone or something better,
you mean that that person or thing is the best of
their kind 19
c o u n t o n / u p o n sb to have confidence in someone
because you know that they will do w h a t you
want 16
c o v e r - u p n an attempt to stop people discovering
the truth a b o u t something b a d 4
c r a c k d o w n if someone in authority [e.g. police,
government] cracks d o w n , they start treating
people much more strictly in order to try to stop
them from doing things they should not do 17,
66
c r a c k d o w n n when bad or illegal behaviour is
dealt with in a very severe way, in order to stop
it happening 66
c r a m in/into if a lot of people or animals cram in
or cram into a place, they all go into it even
though it is t o o small for all of them and
becomes very full 33
c r o p up if a problem crops up, it suddenly
happens, often when it is not expected 34
c r o p up if something, especially a w o r d , crops up,
it appears, often in something that you read,
hear, or see 44
c r o s s o u t s t h or c r o s s s t h o u t to draw a line
through something that you have written,
usually because it is w r o n g 42
c u t b a c k ( s t h ) or c u t ( s t h ) b a c k to reduce the
a m o u n t of money that is being spent on
something 47
c u t b a c k n a reduction in the a m o u n t of money
that is being spent on something 4
c u t d o w n s t h or c u t sth d o w n if you cut down
a tree or a bush, you make it fall to the ground
by cutting it near the bottom 17
c u t d o w n to eat or drink less of a particular
thing, usually in order to improve your health
17
c u t d o w n s t h o r c u t s t h d o w n t o reduce the
amount or number of something 28
c u t off sb or c u t sb off to stop people from
continuing a telephone conversation by breaking
the telephone connection 50
c u t off s b / s t h or c u t sb/sth off to prevent people
from reaching a place or leaving a place 2
c u t off to be a long way from other places and
people 24
c u t o u t s t h o r c u t sth o u t t o remove something
by cutting, especially something made of paper
or cloth 2,14
c u t o u t sth or c u t s t h o u t to remove part of a
piece of writing 44
English Phrasal Verbs in Use 187
 cut out if an engine, machine, or piece of
equipment cuts out, it suddenly stops working 2,
64
date back to have existed since a particular time
23
dawn on/upon sb if a fact dawns on you, you
realise or understand something after a period of
time when you did not realise or understand it
36
deal with sth to take action in order to achieve
something, or in order to solve a problem 31, 36
deal with sth if something [e.g. book, film,
article] deals with a particular subject or idea, it
is about that subject or idea 19
depend on/upon sth/sb to trust someone or
something and know that they will help you or
do what you expect them to do 16
dial out to use a telephone in order to call
someone in another building 50
die for sth informal see be dying for sth 19
dip into sth to read small parts of a book or
magazine 44
divide up (sth) or divide (sth) up to separate
something into smaller parts or groups, or to
form smaller parts or groups 13
do away with sth to get rid of something, or to
stop using something 1, 68
do up sth or do sth up to fasten something 32
do with -• could do with sth/sb to need or
want something or someone 19
do without (sth/sb) to manage without
something or someone 37 see I could do
without sth/sb
downfall n the sudden failure of a person or
organisation, or something that causes this 4,27
downpour n a sudden, heavy fall of rain 61
doze off informal to gradually start to sleep,
especially during the day 15
drag on if an unpleasant or difficult situation or
process drags on, it continues for too long 23
draw on/upon sth to use information or your
knowledge or experience of something to help
you do something 35
draw up if a vehicle, or someone in a vehicle,
draws up, they arrive somewhere and stop 63
dress up (sb) or dress (sb) up to put on formal
or special clothes for a special occasion, or to put
them on someone else 2, 32
dress-down adj used about an occasion when
you wear less formal clothes than normal 70
drift apart if two friends drift apart, they
gradually become less friendly and their
relationship ends 53
drink up (sth) or drink (sth) up to completely
finish your drink 13
drop around/round informal to make a short
visit to someone in their home, usually without
arranging it before 59
188 English Phrasal Verbs in Use
drop around/round sth or drop sth
around/round informal to deliver something,
usually something small 59
drop in to make a short visit to someone in their
home, usually without arranging it before 59
drop off sb/sth or drop sb/sth off to take
someone to a place that they want to go to, or to
deliver something to a place, usually in a car,
often when you are going somewhere else 63
drop off sth or drop sth off to take someone to
a place that they want to go to, or to deliver
something to a place, usually in a car, often
when you are going somewhere else 1
drop out if a student drops out, they stop going
to classes before they have finished their course
4, 43, 55
dropout n a person who leaves school or college
before finishing a course 4
drop round/around see drop around/round
dry up if a supply of something dries up, it ends
28
dry up to stop speaking when you are acting or
making a speech, especially because you
suddenly forget what to say next 31
dying for sth informal to want something very
much, especially food or drink 19
eat out to eat a meal in a restaurant, not at home
1, 60
eat up sth or eat sth up to eat all the food you
have been given 13
e-mail back (sb) or e-mail (sb) back to send a
reply to someone by e-mail, usually a reply to an
e-mail someone has sent you 20
end up to finally be in a particular place, state, or
situation, especially without having planned it
55
end up doing sth to finally do something,
especially without having planned to 55
enter into sth to start to become involved in
something, especially a discussion 21
enter into sth if you enter into an agreement,
you officially agree to something 68
face up to sth to accept that a difficult or
unpleasant situation exists 36
fall apart if something falls apart, it breaks or
breaks into pieces because it is old or weak 30
fall behind (sth/sb) to fail to develop at the same
rate as something else, or to fail to achieve a
standard reached by other people 42
fall down to fall to the ground 29
fall down to fail because of not being satisfactory
for a particular purpose 4 downfall n the
sudden failure of a person or organisation, or
something that causes this 4,27
fall for sb/sth informal to be attracted to
someone or something 52
fall for sth to be tricked into believing something
that is not true 2,39
fall o u t to argue with someone and stop being
friendly with them 38, 52
falling-out n informal an argument 52
fall o v e r if someone falls over, they fall to the
ground 3,17
fall t h r o u g h if a plan or agreement falls through,
it fails to happen 27
feel for sb to feel sorry for someone because they
are very unhappy or in a difficult situation 51
fight back to defend yourself when someone or
something attacks you or causes problems for you
30
fight off sth or fight s t h off to try hard to get rid
of something unpleasant or unwanted, especially
an illness or bad emotions 56
figure o u t s t h or figure sth o u t American to
understand something or someone, or to find the
answer to something by thinking carefully 69
fill in s t h or fill s t h in to write the necessary
information on an official document [e.g. form,
questionnaire] 44
fill in sb or fill sb in to tell someone a b o u t the
things that have happened while they have not
been there, or to give someone the information
they need in order to do something 45
fill o u t s t h or fill sth o u t to write the necessary
information on an official document [e.g. form,
questionnaire] 44
fill up ( s t h ) or fill ( s t h ) up to become full, or to
make something become full 26
find o u t ( s t h ) o r find ( s t h ) o u t t o get
information a b o u t something because you want
to k n o w more about it, or to learn a fact or
piece of information for the first time 35
finish off s t h or finish s t h off to complete the
last part of something that you are doing 28
finish w i t h sb informal, British & Australian to
end a romantic relationship with someone 53
Fire away! informal something that you say in
order to tell someone that you are ready for
them to start asking you questions, or to start
speaking 41
fit in to feel h a p p y in a group of people because
you are similar to them 52
fit in sb/sth or fit sb/sth in to find time to do
something or see someone 22
fix up s b / s t h or fix s b / s t h up to provide or
arrange something for someone 45
fizzle o u t to gradually end or disappear,
especially in a disappointing way 28
flare up if something [e.g. violence, argument,
anger] flares u p , it suddenly happens and
becomes very serious 66
flick t h r o u g h s t h to look briefly at the pages of
something [e.g. book, magazine] 20
flip t h r o u g h s t h to look briefly at the pages of
something [e.g. book, magazine] 20
flood o u t sb or flood sb o u t to force someone
to leave their home because of floods 61
follow up s t h or follow s t h up to do something
in order to make the effect of an earlier action or
thing stronger or more certain 45
fool a r o u n d to spend time having fun or behaving
in a silly way 18
fork o u t s t h or fork s t h o u t informal to pay or
give money for something, especially when you
do not want to 48
f r e s h e n up to quickly wash yourself so that you
feel clean 32, 69
g e t a c r o s s sth o r g e t s t h a c r o s s t o successfully
communicate an idea to other people 31
g e t a h e a d to be successful in the w o r k that you
d o 45
g e t a l o n g if two or more people get along, they
like each other a n d are friendly to each other 52
g e t a r o u n d / r o u n d s t h to find a way of dealing
with or avoiding a problem 7
g e t around/round to sth/doing sth to do
something that you have intended to do for a
long time 7
g e t at sth see be g e t t i n g at s t h 7
g e t a w a y to leave a place or person, often when
the situation makes it difficult for you to do this
2, 7
g e t away to go somewhere to have a holiday,
especially because you need to rest 62
g e t a w a y adj used to escape something or
someone 62
g e t a w a y w i t h s t h / d o i n g s t h to succeed in not
being criticised or punished for something wrong
that you have done 7
g e t away w i t h s t h / d o i n g s t h t o d o something
successfully even though it is not the best way of
doing it 1,7
g e t sth b a c k or g e t b a c k sth if you get
something back, something that you had before
is given to you again 47
g e t b a c k to sb if you get back to someone, you
talk to them, usually on the telephone, in order
to give them some information that they have
asked you for, or because you were not able to
speak to them before 50
g e t b e h i n d if you get behind with work or with
payments, you have not done as much work or
paid as much money as you should by a
particular time 7
g e t by to have just enough money to pay for the
things that you need, but nothing more 7
g e t carried away to become so excited about
something that you do not control w h a t you say
or do and you forget about everything else 51
g e t d o w n t o s t h / d o i n g s t h t o start doing
something seriously and with a lot of your
attention and effort 5
English Phrasal Verbs in Use 189
 get in if a train, plane, or other vehicle gets in at a
particular time, that is when it arrives 62
get into sb informal, Australian to criticise
someone 69
get mixed up in sth to become involved in an
illegal or bad activity 67
get off (sth) to leave a bus, train, aircraft, or boat
62
get on (sth) to go onto a bus, train, aircraft, or
boat 2, 5, 62
get on if two or more people get on, they like
each other and are friendly to each other 2, 5, 7
get on to continue doing something, especially
work 5, 7
get on to/onto sth to start talking about a
subject after discussing something else 31
get out to move out of a vehicle 63
get out of sth/doing sth to avoid doing
something that you should do, often by giving an
excuse 34
get over sth to begin to feel better after an
experience that has made you unhappy 17, 26
get over see can't/couldn't get over sth
get sth over with to do and complete something
difficult or unpleasant that must be done 7
get round/around see get around/round
get through to manage to talk to someone on the
telephone 1, 50
get through to sb to succeed in making someone
understand or believe something 31
get to sb informal to make someone feel upset or
angry 38
get together (sb) or get (sb) together if two
or more people get together, or if someone gets
two or more people together, they meet in order
to do something or spend time together 7
get (sb) up to wake up and get out of bed, or to
make someone do this 58
getting at sth informal if you ask someone what
they are getting at, you are asking them what
they mean, usually because they have expressed
something indirectly 7
give away sth or give sth away to give
something to someone without asking for
payment 47
give in to finally agree to what someone wants
after a period when you refuse to agree 2,38
give in to accept that you have been defeated and
agree to stop competing or fighting 57
give in sth or give sth in to give a piece of
written work or a document to someone for
them to read, judge, or deal with 2, 42
give out sth or give sth out to give something
to a large number of people 42
give up (sth) or give (sth) up if you give up a
habit [e.g. smoking, drinking] or give up
something unhealthy [e.g. cigarettes, alcohol],
you stop doing it or having it 26
190 English Phrasal Verbs in Use
give up sth or give sth up to stop doing a
regular activity or a job 28
give up (sth/doing sth) or give (sth) up to stop
doing an activity or piece of work before you
have completed it, usually because it is too
difficult 28
give up to stop trying to think of the answer to a
joke or question 35
go about sth/doing sth to start to do something
or deal with something 8
go about doing sth if someone goes about doing
something for a long time, they spend their time
behaving badly or doing something that is
unpleasant for other people 8
go against sth/sb to do the opposite of what
someone has asked or advised you to do 2
go ahead to start to do something 68
go-ahead n permission for something to start 68
go along with sth/sb to support an idea, or to
agree with someone's opinion 8
go back if schools or students go back, the
schools are open and the students start going to
lessons again after the holidays 43
go back sth informal if people go back a number
of years, they have been friends for that many
years or since that time 20
go back on sth to not do something that you
promised or said you would do 54
go by if time goes by, it passes 23 bygone ad)
from the past 23
go down to become lower in level 2
go down with sth informal, British to become
ill, usually with a disease that is not very serious
56
go for sth to choose something 8
go for sth to try to get or achieve something 19,
57
go for sb/sth to like a particular type of thing or
person 52
go forward to win one stage of a competition and
compete in another stage 57
go in for sth to compete in a competition, or to
do an exam 8
go into sth to describe, discuss, or examine
something in a detailed way 21
go off to leave a place and go somewhere else 8
go off if food or drink goes off, it is not good to
eat or drink any more because it is too old 8, 60
go off if a warning device [e.g. alarm] goes off, it
suddenly makes a loud noise 64
go off if a bomb or gun goes off, it explodes or fires
66
go on to continue to exist or happen 8
go on to continue doing something 8
go on to happen 8
goings-on n strange or amusing events 4
go on to talk in an annoying way about
something for a long time 8
Go on! informal something that you say to
encourage someone to do something 8, 41
go out if a light goes out, it stops giving light 8
go out British to lose when you are playing in a
sports competition, so that you must stop
playing in the competition 57
go out with sb to have a romantic relationship
with someone 52
go over sth to talk or think about something in
order to explain it or make sure that it is correct
17
go through sth to experience an unpleasant or
difficult situation or event 2, 8
go through sth to carefully examine the contents
of something or a collection of things in order to
find something 8
go through sth to carefully read or discuss every
part of something in order to make sure that it is
correct or acceptable 17, 20
go through with sth to do something unpleasant
or difficult which you have planned or promised
to do 8
go together if two types of thing or people go
together, they are usually found with each other
8 someone 22
go together if two pieces of clothing or two
types of food go together, they look or taste
good when you wear or eat them at the same
time 32
go under if a company or business goes under, it
fails financially 49
go up if an amount, rate, or standard goes up, it
rises 26
go with sth if one thing goes with another, they
suit each other or they look or taste good
together 19, 60
go without (sth) to not have something which
you usually have 8
goings-on n strange or amusing events 4
goof off informal, American to avoid doing any
work 69
grow apart if people who are good friends grow
apart, they gradually become less friendly, often
because they do not have the same interests and
opinions any more 53
grow on sb informal if something or someone
grows on you, you like them more and more,
although you did not like them at first 51
grow up to gradually change from being a child
to being an adult 55
hack into sth to get into someone else's computer
system without permission in order to look at
information or do something illegal 65
hand down sth or hand sth down to give or
teach something to someone who will be alive
after you have died 55
hand in sth or hand sth in to give a piece of
written work [e.g. essay] to a teacher 42
hand out sth or hand sth out to give something
to each person in a group of people 42
handout n a piece of paper that is given to
people who go to a talk or class and which has
information on it about the subject dealt with in
the talk or class 4, 42
hand over sth or hand sth over to give
something to someone else 17
hand over (sth/sb) or hand (sth/sb) over to
give someone else responsibility for or control of
something or someone 45
hand round sth or hand sth round to offer
something, especially food or drink, to each
person in a group of people 60
hang about/around/round (swh) informal to
spend time somewhere, usually without doing
very much 18
hang on informal to wait, especially for a short
time 22
Hang on! informal something that you say when
you are confused or surprised by something and
you need to think 41
hang out informal to spend a lot of time in a
particular place, or to spend a lot of time with
hang up to end a telephone conversation, often
suddenly, by putting the part of the telephone
that you speak into back into its usual position
50
hang up sth or hang sth up to hang something,
especially clothes, on a hook 13
hang up informal see hung up 51
hang-up n informal a feeling of embarrassment
or fear about something, often when it is not
necessary to feel that way 51
have it out with sb informal to talk to someone
about something that they have said or done that
has made you angry in order to improve the
situation 54
have sb around/round if you have someone
around, they come to your house for a social
visit 59
have sb on to persuade someone that something
is true when it is not, usually as a joke 39
have sth on to have an arrangement to do
something 37
have sb over if you have someone over, they
come to your house to visit you 59
head off to start a journey or leave a place 15
heat up sth or heat sth up to make food hot so
that it can be eaten 60
heat up (sth) or heat (sth) up to become warm
or hot, or to make something warmer or hotter
26
help out (sb) or help (sb) out to help someone,
especially by giving them money or by doing
work for them 14
English Phrasal Verbs in Use 191
 h e l p sb off w i t h sth to help someone remove a
piece of outer clothing [e.g. coat] 29
h e l p sb on w i t h s t h to help someone to put on a
piece of clothing 29
h i d e away to go to a place where other people
will not find you 66
h i d e a w a y n a place where someone goes to be
alone 66
hire o u t sth or hire sth o u t British &
Australian to allow someone to use something
for a short period of time after they have paid
you money 49
hit b a c k to criticise or attack someone w h o has
criticised or attacked you 40
hit it off if t w o or more people hit it off, they like
each other and become friendly immediately 52
hold sth a g a i n s t sb to like or respect someone
less because they have done something wrong or
behaved badly 38
hold d o w n s t h or hold sth d o w n to control the
level of something [e.g. prices, costs, inflation]
and to prevent it from increasing 17
hold off ( s t h / d o i n g s t h ) to delay something or
doing something 15
h o l d on to wait for a short time 50
H o l d o n ! something you say to show that you are
surprised or confused about something and that
you need time to think a b o u t it for a short time
41
hold up sth/sb or hold s t h / s b up to delay
something or someone 23
hold up sth/sb or hold sth/sb up to steal money
from a building [e.g. bank], a person, or a vehicle,
by using violence or by threatening to use violence
67
h o l d - u p n a delay 23
h o l d - u p n when someone steals from someone
else using violence or the threat of violence 67
h o t up informal if an event or situation hots up,
it becomes more exciting and there is a lot more
activity 34
h u n g up informal to be very worried a b o u t
something and spend a lot of time thinking
a b o u t it 51
hurry up to do something more quickly 41
hurry up s b / s t h or hurry sb/sth up to make
someone do something more quickly, or to make
something happen sooner 23
I c o u l d do w i t h o u t s t h something that you say
when something is annoying you or causing
problems for you, because your situation at that
time makes it difficult for you to deal with it 37
invite a l o n g sb or invite sb a l o n g to ask
someone if they would like to go with you to an
event or activity 3
invite a r o u n d / r o u n d sb or invite sb
a r o u n d / r o u n d to ask someone to come to your
h o m e 3, 59
192 English Phrasal Verbs in Use
invite back sb or invite sb b a c k to ask someone
to come to your h o m e after you have been out
somewhere together 3
invite in sb or invite sb in to ask someone if
they would like to come into your house 3
invite o u t sb or invite sb o u t to ask someone to
go with you to a place, for example a restaurant
or the cinema 3, 59
invite o v e r sb or invite sb o v e r to ask someone
to come to your home 3, 59
invite up sb or invite sb up to ask someone if
they would like to come upstairs 3
join in ( s t h ) to become involved in an activity
w i t h other people 57
j o t d o w n sth or j o t sth d o w n to write
something quickly on a piece of paper so that
you remember it 44
j u m b l e up sth or j u m b l e s t h up to mix things
together in an untidy way 13
j u m p at sth to eagerly accept a chance to do or
have something 51
j u m p o u t at sb if something jumps out at you,
you notice it immediately 36
k e e p ( s b ) at sth to continue working hard at
something difficult or something which takes a
long time, or to make someone continue to work
hard 46
k e e p away (sb/sth) or k e e p (sb/sth) away to
not go somewhere or near something, or to
prevent someone or something from going
somewhere or near something 21
k e e p d o w n sth or k e e p s t h d o w n to stop the
number, level, or size of something from
increasing 17
k e e p on at sb to talk to someone about
something many times, usually because you want
to complain about something they have done or
not done 54
k e e p on d o i n g s t h to continue to do something,
or to do something again and again 2, 16
k e e p sth f r o m sb to not tell someone about
something 54
k e e p to s t h to do what you have promised or
planned to do 31
k e e p up to go at the same speed as someone or
something that is moving forward, so that you
stay level with them 23
k e e p up to increase or to make progress at the
same speed as something or someone else so that
you stay at the same level as them 2 7
k e e p up s t h or k e e p sth up to practise a skill
that you learned in the past so that you continue
to be good at it 43
k e e p it up to continue to do something, especially
to w o r k hard or to do good w o r k 41
key in s t h or key s t h in to p u t information into a
computer using a keyboard 65
kick-off n the time when a football match begins
57
knock about/around together informal to
spend a lot of time with someone, either because
they are your friend or because you are having a
romantic relationship with them 22
knock down sb or knock sb down to hit
someone with a vehicle and injure or kill them 63
knockdown adj very low (in price) 47
knock off (sth) informal to stop working,
usually at the end of a day 45
knock off sth or knock sth off (sth) to take a
particular amount away from something,
especially a price 48
knock out to defeat a person or team in a
competition so that they have to stop taking part
i n k 57
knockout n a competition in which only the
winners of each stage play in the next stage, until
one person or team is the final winner 57
knock over sth/sb or knock sth/sb over to hit
or push something or someone, especially
accidentally, so that they fall to the ground or
onto their side 17, 30
latch on informal, British & Australian to
understand something 35
latch on to/onto sb to spend time with someone,
especially when they do not want you with them
22
laugh off sth or laugh sth off to laugh about
something unpleasant in order to make it seem
less important or serious 15
launch into sth to start doing or saying
something [e.g. speech, story] in a very
enthusiastic way 21
lay into sb to attack or criticise someone in an
angry way 40, 69
lay off sb or lay sb off to stop employing
someone because there is no work for them to
do 45
laze about/around to relax and enjoy yourself by
doing very little 18
lead on sb or lead sb on to make someone
believe something that is not true 67
leak out if secret information leaks out, people
who should not know this information find out
about it 66
lean on sb informal to try to make someone do
what you want by threatening or persuading
them 67
leave aside sth or leave sth aside to not discuss
or consider a particular subject so that you can
discuss a different subject 31
leave behind sth/sb or leave sth/sb behind
to leave a place without taking something or
someone with you, either because you have
forgotten them or because you cannot take them
with you 24
leave out sb/sth or leave sb/sth out to not
include someone or something 2, 14
leave sb to sth informal to go away from
someone so that they do something by
themselves or so they can continue what they are
doing 45
left over if an amount of money or food is left
over, it remains when the rest has been used or
eaten 4, 60
left over to exist from an earlier time 23
leftover adj existing from an earlier time 23
leftovers n food that was prepared for a meal but
not eaten 4, 60
let down sb or let sb down to disappoint
someone by failing to do what you agreed to do
or what you were expected to do 53
let off sb or let sb off to not punish someone
who has committed a crime or done something
wrong, or to not punish someone severely 67
let on to tell someone about something which was
supposed to be a secret 54
let out sb/sth or let sb/sth out to allow a
person or animal to leave somewhere, especially
by opening a locked or closed door 14
let-out n an excuse or way of avoiding doing
something you agreed to do 36
let up informal if bad weather or an unpleasant
situation lets up, it stops or improves 5, 61
lie about/around informal to spend time lying
down and doing very little 18
lie ahead if an event or situation that will cause
problems lies ahead, it will happen in the future
23
lie behind sth to be the real reason for something
25
lie in British & Australian to stay in bed in the
morning later than you usually do 58
lie-in n British & Australian when you stay in
bed in the morning longer than usual 58
lie in sth to exist or be found in something 36
lift off if a spacecraft or aircraft lifts off, it leaves
the ground 15
lift-off n the moment when a spacecraft leaves the
ground 15
lighten up to become more relaxed and less
serious 70
Lighten up! informal something you say to tell
someone to stop being so serious or annoyed
41
listen in to secretly listen to a conversation,
especially a telephone conversation 50
Listen up! informal, American something you say
to tell people to listen to what you are going to
say 69
littered with sth if something is littered with a
particular type of thing, it has or contains a lot
of that thing 32
English Phrasal Verbs in Use 193
 live d o w n s t h or live s t h d o w n to stop feeling
embarrassed about something you have done by
waiting until people forget about it 53
live for s t h / s b to believe that something or
someone is the most important thing or person
in your life 19
live off s t h / s b to have enough money for the
things you need by taking it from a supply of
money or from another person 58
live off s t h to only eat a particular type of
food 60
live on sth to have a particular a m o u n t of money
in order to buy the things you need 58
live on sth to only eat a particular type of
food 60
live t h r o u g h s t h to experience a difficult
situation or event 20
live up to s t h if someone or something lives up to
people's expectations or a particular standard,
they are as good as they were expected to be 55
liven up ( s t h ) or liven ( s t h ) up to become more
interesting and exciting, or to make something
become like this 13
load d o w n sb or load sb d o w n to give someone
too many things to carry 17
load up ( s t h ) or load ( s t h ) up to put a lot of
things into a vehicle or machine 64
l o c k y o u r s e l f away to go to a r o o m or building
where you can be alone, usually so that you can
work 21
lock in sb or lock sb in to prevent someone from
leaving a r o o m or building by locking the door
16
l o c k o u t s b o r lock s b o u t t o prevent someone
from entering a building by locking the d o o r 14
lock y o u r s e l f o u t to accidentally prevent yourself
from getting into a building or vehicle by leaving
the keys inside when you shut the door 14
log in to connect a computer to a system of
computers by typing your name, usually so that
you can start working 65
l o g off ( s t h ) to stop a computer being connected
to a computer system, usually when you w a n t to
stop working 65
log on to connect a computer to a system of
computers by typing your name, usually so that
you can start working 65
l o g o u t to stop a computer being connected to a
computer system, usually when you want to stop
working 65
l o o k after sb/sth to take care of someone or
something by doing w h a t is needed to keep them
well or in good condition 1, 9
l o o k a h e a d to think about what will happen in
the future and plan for these events 9
l o o k a r o u n d / r o u n d ( s w h ) to walk through a
building or around a place and look at the things
in it 18
Phrasal Verbs in Use
l o o k a r o u n d / r o u n d to try to find something you
want [e.g. job] by asking different people or by
looking in different places 9
l o o k at sth to consider a subject carefully in order
to make a decision about it 9
l o o k at sth to read something quickly and not
very carefully 9
l o o k b a c k to think about or remember something
that happened in the past 2
l o o k d o w n on sb/sth to think that someone is
less important than you, or to think that
something is not good enough quality for you to
use 1, 9
l o o k for s t h / s b to try to find something or
someone, either because you have lost them or
because you need them 3
l o o k f o r w a r d to s t h / d o i n g s t h to feel pleased
and excited about something that is going to
happen 1, 9
l o o k i n t o s t h to discover and examine the facts
a b o u t a problem or situation 9,21
l o o k on to watch an activity or event without
becoming involved in it 4, 9 o n l o o k e r n a
person w h o watches an activity or event without
becoming involved in it 4, 9
l o o k o u t for s b / s t h to carefully watch the people
or things around you so that you will notice a
particular person or thing 9, 66
l o o k o u t n a person w h o is watching for danger
9, 66
L o o k o u t ! something you say or shout in order to
tell someone that they are in danger 41
l o o k o v e r s t h / s b or l o o k s t h / s b o v e r to quickly
examine something or someone 3,9, 17
l o o k r o u n d / a r o u n d see l o o k a r o u n d / r o u n d
l o o k t h r o u g h s t h to read something quickly and
not very carefully 9, 17, 20
l o o k up if a situation is looking up, it is
improving 1, 9, 26
l o o k up sb or l o o k sb up to visit someone w h o
you have not seen for a long time when you are
visiting the place where they live 1, 9
l o o k up sth or l o o k s t h up to look at a book or
computer in order to find a piece of information
1, 9
l o o k up to sb to respect and admire someone 9
l o s e o u t to not have an advantage that other
people have 14
m a k e for s w h to go in the direction of a place 10
m a k e o u t s t h / s b o r m a k e s t h / s b o u t t o b e able
to see or hear something or someone, usually
with difficulty 2,10
m a k e o u t s t h o r m a k e sth o u t t o understand
something, especially the reason why something
has happened 10
m a k e o u t s t h o r m a k e s t h o u t t o write all the
necessary information on an official document
[e.g. cheque, application, ticket] 44
m a k e o u t s b o r m a k e s b o u t t o understand why
someone behaves in the way that they do 1, 10
m a k e up sth or m a k e sth up to say or write
something that is not true [e.g. excuse, report,
story] in order to deceive someone 10
m a k e up s t h or m a k e sth up to invent
something [e.g. story, game] 10
m a k e up sth to form the whole of something 10
m a k e - u p n the combination of things which form
something 10
m a k e up to forgive someone w h o you have
argued with and to become friendly with them
again 53
m a k e up for sth to replace something that has
been lost, or to provide something good in order
to make a bad situation better 10
m a k e it up to sb to do something good for
someone w h o you have done something bad to
in the past, or to someone w h o has done
something good for you 10
m a t c h up if two pieces of information match up,
they are the same and this shows that the
information is likely to be correct 35
m e a s u r e o u t sth or m e a s u r e sth o u t to take a
small a m o u n t of something from a larger
a m o u n t , first weighing or measuring it in order
to make sure that it is the right a m o u n t 64
m e a s u r e up to be good enough 40
m e e t w i t h sb American to have a meeting with
someone in order to discuss or arrange
something 69
m e s s a b o u t / a r o u n d to spend time playing or
doing things with no particular purpose 18
m e s s a b o u t / a r o u n d t o behave stupidly o r t o
waste time doing unimportant things 18, 69
m e s s sb a b o u t / a r o u n d informal to treat
someone badly, especially by changing your mind
a lot or not doing what you have promised 1,18
m e s s u p ( s t h ) o r m e s s ( s t h ) u p t o spoil o r
damage something, or to do something badly 42
mill a b o u t / a r o u n d ( s w h ) to walk around a
particular place or area, usually while waiting
for something 18
Mind o u t ! British & American something that
you say in order to tell someone to be careful or
to warn someone of a danger 41
m i s s o u t to not do or get something that you
would enjoy or that would be good for you, or
to not have something that other people have 53
m i s s o u t sb/sth or m i s s sb/sth o u t British &
American to fail to include someone or
something 42
m i x up s t h / s b or m i x s t h / s b up to confuse t w o
people or things by thinking that one person or
thing is the other person or thing 34
m i x - u p n a mistake caused by confusion which
prevents something from being done or causes
something to be done incorrectly 4, 34
m i x e d up in sth informal to be involved in an
illegal or unpleasant activity 67
m o u t h off informal to talk about a subject as if
you k n o w more than everyone else, or to
complain a lot about something 54
m o v e ( s t h ) a l o n g if a process moves along, or if
you move a process along, it develops in a
satisfactory way 46
m o v e in to begin living in a new house or area 58
m o v e in t o g e t h e r to start living in the same
house as someone you are having a romantic
relationship with 58
m o v e o u t to stop living in a particular house 58
m o v e o v e r to change the place where you are
sitting or standing so that there is space for
someone else to sit or stand 3, 17, 29
m o v e up British & Australian to move slightly so
that there is enough space for someone else 29
m u c k a b o u t / a r o u n d informal to waste time
doing silly things 22
m u d d l e t h r o u g h to succeed in doing something
even though you have difficulties because you do
not really know h o w to do it 27
m u d d l e up sb/sth or m u d d l e s b / s t h up to
confuse two people or things in your mind 34
m u g up ( s t h ) or m u g ( s t h ) up informal, British
to quickly try to learn the main facts about a
subject, especially before an exam 43
n a m e sb/sth after sb/sth to give someone or
something the same name as someone or
something else 55
n a r r o w d o w n s t h or n a r r o w s t h d o w n to make
something [e.g. list, choice, option] smaller a n d
clearer by removing the things that are less
important 36
n o t e d o w n sth o r n o t e s t h d o w n t o write
words or numbers, often so that you do not
forget them 1 7, 44
off-putting adj unattractive or unpleasant 15
o n l o o k e r n a person w h o watches an activity or
event without becoming involved in it 9
o p e n o n t o s t h if a r o o m , window, or door opens
onto a place, it opens in the direction of that
place or has a view of it 24
o p e n u p ( s t h ) o r o p e n ( s t h ) u p t o start a n e w
shop or business 13
o p e n up to start to talk more a b o u t yourself and
your feelings 54
o p t o u t to choose not to be part of an activity or
arrangement, or to stop being involved with it
37
o r d e r sb a b o u t / a r o u n d to tell someone w h a t
they should do all the time 18, 31
o u t b r e a k n when something unpleasant or
difficult to control starts, such as w a r or disease
66
o u t c r y n a public expression of anger or
disapproval 4, 38
English Phrasal Verbs in Use 195
 o u t l e t n a shop that is one of many owned by a
particular company and that sells the company's
goods 49
o u t p o u r i n g n a strong expression of emotion
54
o u t s e t n the beginning of something 4, 28
o u t s t a n d i n g ad) extremely good, or of a very
high standard 40
o v e r s l e e p to sleep longer than you had intended
58
o w n up to admit that you have done something
wrong, especially something that is not important
54
p a c k away s t h or p a c k s t h away to put
something into a bag or container, or to put
something in the place where it is usually kept
21
p a c k e d o u t ad) very full of people 33
p a c k up ( s t h ) or p a c k ( s t h ) up to collect your
things together and put them into bags or boxes,
especially when you have finished doing
something 28
pair off if two people pair off, they start a
romantic relationship 52
pan o u t to develop or happen in a particular way
26
p a r t i e d o u t informal to have had enough of
parties because you have been to so many 70
p a s s away to die 56
p a s s by if time or a period of time [e.g. week]
passes by, it goes past 23
p a s s for sb/sth if someone or something passes
for someone or something else, they appear like
that person or thing 55
p a s s off British & American if an event passes off
in a good way, it happens in that way 33
p a s s on sth or p a s s sth on to give something to
someone else 16
p a s s on sth or p a s s sth on to tell someone
something that someone else has told you 31
p a s s on to die 56
p a s s r o u n d sth or p a s s sth r o u n d to offer
something to each person in a group of people
60
p a s s o u t to become unconscious 56
pay b a c k s b / s t h or pay sb/sth b a c k to pay
someone the money that you owe them 47
pay b a c k sb or pay sb b a c k to do something
unpleasant to someone because they have done
something unpleasant to you 25
pay off s t h or pay s t h off if you pay off a debt
[e.g. loan, mortgage, overdraft], you pay back all
the money you owe 47
pay off if something that you have done to try to
achieve something pays off, it is successful 27
pay up informal to give someone the money that
you owe them, especially when you do not w a n t
to 47
196 English Phrasal Verbs in Use
pencil in sth/sb or pencil s t h / s b in to arrange
for something to happen or for someone to
do something on a particular date, knowing that
the arrangement might be changed later 45
p h a s e in sth or p h a s e s t h in to make a new
system, process, or law gradually begin to
happen or exist 26
p h a s e o u t sth o r p h a s e s t h o u t t o gradually
stop using or supplying something 26
p h o n e a r o u n d / r o u n d ( s b ) to telephone several
people, often in order to find out information
50, 69
p h o n e ( s b ) back to telephone someone for the
second time or to telephone someone w h o rang
you earlier 20
p h o n e up ( s b ) or p h o n e ( s b ) up to telephone
someone 50
pick on sb to choose one person from a group of
people to criticise or treat unfairly, especially
when they are smaller or weaker than you 40
pick up s t h / s b or pick s t h / s b up to lift
something or someone by using your hands 29
pick up s t h / s b or pick s t h / s b up to collect
someone w h o is waiting for you, or to collect
something that you have left somewhere or that
you have bought 2, 63
pick-up n when a car, taxi, etc. collects you 48
p i c k u p n small truck with an open back 48
pick up sth or pick s t h up to collect something
you have left somewhere 65
pick up sth or pick s t h up to get or buy
something when you have gone to a place to do
something else 47
pick up s t h or pick s t h up to buy something
cheaply 48
pick up s t h or pick sth up to learn a new skill
or language by practising it rather than being
taught it 43
pick up if something [e.g. business, economy,
trade] picks up, it improves or increases after a
bad period 26
pick-up n an increase or improvement 48
pick up if the wind picks up, it becomes stronger
61
pick-up n informal when you start talking to
someone you do not k n o w because you want to
have a sexual relationship with them 48
pile up ( s t h ) or pile ( s t h ) up if something
unpleasant [e.g. work, bills, losses] piles up, or if
you pile it up, you get more and more of it 46
pile-up n an accident involving several cars
4, 63
pin d o w n sb or pin sb d o w n to make someone
give you exact details or a decision a b o u t
something 54
plan a h e a d to make decisions or plans about
something you will do or something that might
happen in the future 37